Channel 12 Weighs Police Action After Impostor Infiltrates Live Broadcast
An impostor infiltrated a Channel 12 live broadcast with a fake story about a dramatic flight, allegedly orchestrated by a Channel 14 researcher, prompting threats of police action.
A sensitive security event turned into a media embarrassment on Wednesday when an impostor successfully infiltrated a live broadcast on Channel 12. Posing as a passenger on a dramatic flight, the man provided reporter Tamir Steinman with fictional accounts of mid-air turbulence before blowing his cover by stating he was on the plane with his brother "Nevo"—short for Nebuchadnezzar.
According to a report by Julian Levinson on the PostNews website, the planned hoax was allegedly orchestrated by Meir Sametsov, a researcher for Channel 12's rival, Channel 14. Levinson reported that Sametsov was allegedly involved in coaching the imposter to prank the news company's researchers.
Suspicion grew after footage of the prank was shared on the X account of the "HaPargod" media outlet. For Sametsov, this marks another media fiasco: only a month and a half ago, he was linked to an embarrassing incident in which Channel 14 broadcasted "exclusive footage" of a woman mistakenly identified as former Military Advocate General Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi.
Following Levinson's report, Channel 12 began investigating the matter with utmost seriousness. Network officials stated that if the suspicions are confirmed and Sametsov is indeed found responsible, they intend to file a police complaint against him. In a conversation between Levinson and Guy Sudri, editor of the Channel 12 news edition, Sudri stated that "Channel 12 will examine the option of filing a police complaint against the troll."
